A tiled surface commonly comprises a matrix of pre-cut pieces that have been permanently secured to an underlying support surface. The individual pieces are spaced apart and the spacing is typically filled with grout joints. The grout joints give stability to the matrix of tiles and helps keep the individual pieces from working loose over time. Grout is installed in the gaps between the installed tile to seal the surface and to provide a finished appearance. Grout is generally white in color and recessed below the surface of the tile. For example, a typical floor tile installation consists of a plurality of tiles bonded to an underlying subfloor by bonding material, including mortar and grout.
Grout is typically a porous cement and sand mixture. Due to the fact that moisture, and consequently dirt, tends to collect and be retained in the grout covered spaces between tiles, and due to the white color of the grout, the grout often requires cleaning. Because the surface of the grout is recessed below the surface of the tile, conventional cleaning implements may not effectively clean the grout. Accordingly, there has been a need in the art to devise an effective cleaning method for grout lines in tiled floors.
The grout cleaning process can be made somewhat easier by specialized brushes shaped to fit into individual lines of grout. To be effective, however, the heads of these brushes must be appropriately sized for the grout lines to be cleaned, and maintain this characteristic during use. A width-ways spread of the bristles can results in a brush that is too wide for effective cleaning of a grouted groove. Even when an appropriately-sized brush is chosen, cleaning the multitude of grout lines associated with most tiled surfaces is a daunting task. The lines of grout must still be cleaned one at a time.
There are a variety of cleaning brushes commercially available for grout cleaning. However, cleaning the grout lines using currently available brushes typically involves labor intensive scrubbing and brushing in a posture that is uncomfortable to a user including, for example, crouch, prone, leaning, or bending over. These awkward positions, in combination with the muscle strength required to reciprocally and repetitively move the brushes, severely limit a person's ability to clean the grout lines because of his or her limited stamina. Also, ergonomic difficulties of conventional grout cleaning activities increase the probability of causing or inducing injuries associated with engaging in such activities.
It is known to clean grout using tools that are designed for use by operators in a standing position. An example is a long-handled tool with an angled handle similar to a broom handle, including a brush attachment such as a nylon brush. These brush attachments greatly deform as the device is pressed down, and thus may not clean or strip the grout efficiently as more robust tools. Another example is a tool including a rigid rectangular plate, with an elongated handle connected to the upper surface of the plate. A tile scrubbing pad made of a fibrous material is connected to the bottom surface of the plate. When pressed down and moved using the elongated handle, this scrubbing pad may not clean or strip lines of grout as precisely and robustly as tools designed specifically for cleaning grout joints.
In summary, conventional grout scrubbing tools, even long-handled tools designed for use by an operator in a standing position, have various ergonomic and efficiency limitations as applied to the physically demanding task of cleaning or scrubbing grout joints.